Chapter 97 Identity Revealed

Chapter 97: Identity Revealed

For a moment, the bustling studio fell silent, as if a pause button had been pressed.

Everyone seemed to be choked, mouths half-open, cheers caught in their throats, hands frozen mid-air in applause.

The live chat, too, went utterly quiet.

The torrent of comments vanished, revealing the full live stream for the first time.

This allowed everyone to see even more clearly the face that now dominated the entire screen.

It was by no means an unattractive face; on the contrary, his features were strikingly beautiful, yet his inherent calm demeanor tempered that intensity, creating a captivating, contradictory allure.

At that moment, he wore an exquisitely crafted crown, held a gleaming golden trophy, and stood at the very center of the stage, bathed in converging spotlights.

Enveloped by this brilliance, he himself seemed to radiate light.

Anyone witnessing this scene would have assumed it was a beauty pageant or an awards ceremony for a Best Actor.

Who could have imagined this was the champion of a cooking competition!

"This has to be a lie…" someone in the audience murmured, lost in thought.

Both the live audience and the online viewers were devoted fans of variety shows, and no one failed to recognize that face.

Yu Xin!

The Yu Xin who had taken the entire galaxy by storm in the first half of the year, the one who had even propelled *Wilderness Adventure* to soaring popularity!

How could he be here? No, why was Ash *him*?!

In the audience, Yu Ning’s eyes widened in disbelief.

Ash, how could it be, how could it be him?!

Yu Xin!!!

He couldn’t be mistaken—it was this very face that had haunted his dreams for so long, leaving him unable to find peace.

He had thought driving Yu Xin out of the Yu family would solve everything, that he would never have to see him again. But then Yu Xin appeared on *Wilderness Adventure*, clearing his name across the internet, and publicly humiliated him on the show, leaving him unable to hold his head high for ages.

He thought he had finally rid himself of Yu Xin.

But why?! Why did he always come back to haunt him?!

Yu Ning had just begun to make some headway with his restaurant, and now Yu Xin had ruined it again!

Yu Xin! Yu Xin!

Chills ran down Yu Ning’s spine, and he trembled uncontrollably, his teeth chattering.

He said he couldn’t show his face—so *this* is what he meant!

He did it on purpose, yes, he did it on purpose!

He set me up, gave me hope, all for this very moment, to make me lose everything!

"Yu Xin?"

A questioning voice drifted from somewhere.

Yu Xin sighed.

What else could he do? It was too late to deny it now; he had no choice but to accept the situation.

Taking the microphone, he dropped the disguised voice, and his clear, gentle male voice echoed throughout the studio:

"I suppose I couldn’t keep it hidden after all."

"That’s right, I’m Yu Xin."

"!!!!!!!!"

"Holy crap, holy crap, someone pinch me, I think I’m dreaming."

"Is that the Yu Xin from *Wilderness Adventure*? How did my beloved streamer suddenly become Yu Xin?"

"Yes, exactly, that’s right. I followed *Wilderness Adventure* from start to finish—I couldn’t possibly mistake him. And he admitted it himself."

"Oh my god, I still can’t believe it, oh my god."

"Double fandom ecstasy!! You know what I mean, folks? The two people I adore are actually the same person!!!"

"No wonder! I always wondered why the streamer went dark every time *Wilderness Adventure* aired. It all makes sense now."

"How many people in this world can cook this well? It’s perfectly logical, couldn’t be more so."

"I just told my best friend that Ash and Yu Xin are the same person, and she said I’m crazy. Haha, I guess I really am crazy."

After a few minutes of silence, a tidal wave of comments once again flooded the screen.

Everyone was in a daze—how could Ash be Yu Xin?

The noise in the studio grew louder, and just as it seemed the situation was getting out of control, the production crew tried to cut the live feed, but Yu Xin waved them off.

He cleared his throat and continued, "Everyone, please settle down and listen to me, okay?"

As soon as Yu Xin spoke, the commotion in the studio gradually subsided. The audience quieted down one by one, listening intently to Yu Xin’s words.

"Participating in this competition as Ash was a decision I made after much thought. After *Wilderness Adventure* ended, I originally planned to let Yu Xin gradually fade from the public eye, leaving only the Ash identity to continue streaming and connecting with everyone."

"I’ve experienced quite a rollercoaster online. I’ve seen firsthand the destructive power of public opinion—how it can build up and tear down. That power is too immense. Those who try to tame it will ultimately be consumed by it."

"There are too many examples of this. I admit, I’m not the bravest person. The best I could think of was to keep my distance. Interacting with everyone behind a separate identity made me feel safer."

His voice, clear as a spring, flowed gently through the studio and the live stream. It possessed a certain magic—everyone listened, and they carefully considered his words. What he said seemed perfectly reasonable, after all.

From being universally criticized to becoming a nationwide sensation, Yu Xin had experienced things most people could hardly imagine. Being cautious seemed perfectly normal, right?

"Sorry for keeping everyone in the dark for so long." Yu Xin placed the trophy beside him, bowed deeply, and faced the camera.

"It’s okay, it’s not your fault!" a girl in the audience shouted.

Soon, voices chimed in one after another from all directions.

"No need to apologize, you didn’t do anything wrong!"

"Yu Xin! Does this mean we can still see you in the future?! Ahhhhh, that's awesome!!"

The audience spontaneously applauded once more, even more fervent and prolonged than before.

Offstage, the weight lifted from Jing Yun’s heart. Despite her vast experience with people, this was the first time she felt such admiration. Though still young, Yu Xin remained cool as a cucumber. Faced with such a major incident, he quickly reacted to stabilize the situation. Unshaken even if Mount Tai collapsed before him—such composure was truly rare.

Aside from admiration, all she felt toward Yu Xin now was shame. Not only had there been repeated mishaps, but this time, such a major accident had occurred. She was too ashamed to face Yu Xin again.

It was obvious there was no need to speculate—the most likely explanation was that someone from their team was at fault.

Jing Yun snorted coldly. It seemed her becoming softer in her old age had made her subordinates forget what she used to be like. She decided to use this opportunity to help them remember.

*

Iris Base.

Ji Yixing, who had been smiling just moments before, his face hardened the moment the incident occurred.

He summoned Bai Yizhou: "Go to the Capital Star. Help Yu Xin figure out what happened, ask him how he wants to handle it, and assign a few people to monitor public opinion."

"Yes, sir," Bai Yizhou accepted the order and left to make preparations.

"Meow." The little black cat seemed to sense the shift in atmosphere. It meowed, jumped off Ji Yixing’s lap, and curled up nearby.

But in reality, controlling online public opinion was completely unnecessary. After the initial shock, netizens were mostly delighted.

The two rising stars who had captivated audiences in the variety show turned out to be the same person?

Once the initial confusion passed, fans of both Yu Xin and Ash put their heads together and realized this was actually a good thing.

This way, Yu Xin’s fans no longer had to worry about him disappearing after the show ended. Knowing he had simply found another way to stay in their lives, they could now see him anytime in his livestreams.

As for Ash’s fans, they finally got to see what their anchor really looked like. With such a drop-dead gorgeous face, it would be a shame to keep it hidden behind a screen forever!

Both sides quickly accepted the dual identities, joyfully embracing each other and enthusiastically swapping various materials and highlight clips.

Those who had liked both were especially thrilled, proudly boasting about their sharp eye—no matter which identity Yu Xin wore, they had accurately spotted and adored him.

And at the moment Yu Xin’s identity was revealed, the Supernova Cooking Competition truly exploded in popularity.

The number of viewers flooding into the livestream after the reveal was so massive it nearly crashed the platform.

Yu Xin dominated all the trending searches on the star network. #YuXinRevealed, #YuXinAsh—each tag followed by a blazing "hot" marker.

That night became the peak of variety show ratings in recent years, even surpassing the heights achieved by *Wilderness Adventure*.

Countless people envied Jing Yun’s career luck. Even her old rival, the director of *Wilderness Adventure*, called with congratulations tinged with envy.

"Congratulations! Producer Jing, your eye for talent remains as sharp as ever. But how did you know Ash was Yu Xin? Even I had no idea—Yu Xin practically vanished after the show ended."

Jing Yun chuckled lightly. "How could I have known in advance? I originally had my eye on Ash. Who knew such a huge surprise was hidden behind that mask?"

"Guess I’m just lucky—what can I say?"

Across all platforms on the star network, discussions about Yu Xin were everywhere.

"Even now, I can’t believe it. What kind of wish-fulfillment story is this?"

1L: I suspect Yu Xin is bound to some system where he enters the entertainment industry to slap everyone in the face with his awesomeness.

2L: From a mocked fake young master to a variety show superstar beloved across the internet. He casually does livestreams and almost becomes the platform’s top anchor. Then he enters a competition and effortlessly dominates to win. If this were a Green River novel, I’d call it ridiculous.

3L: An outdoor survival expert, a gaming god, a culinary Polaris, and an incredibly handsome face to boot—Yu Xin, what other surprises do you have that I haven’t discovered yet?

4L: As someone who liked Yu Xin since the first episode of *Wilderness Adventure*, I’m about to cry. He disappeared right after the show ended, without even a personal account. All I could do was rewatch the episodes over and over. Turns out, this guy was secretly livestreaming behind our backs!

5L: Anchor fans are over the moon too! We finally know what our anchor looks like, and he’s so good-looking! Now that the mask is off, he probably won’t hide his face during streams anymore, right? We can get to drool over his gorgeous face daily!

6L: And the guy is damnably calm. If I didn’t know Yu Xin, I’d suspect this was all scripted by the production team!

7L: So, is no one going to talk about what actually happened? Why did the mask suddenly fall off? It seems fishy.

Another post had a slightly different tone.

"Quietly poking my head in—are there any sisters still shipping Yu Xin and Mr. Ji? Something feels off to me…"

1L: Same here. I have a bold guess—could Mr. Ji be the anchor’s mysterious top patron?

2L: That makes perfect sense, folks! Right after the second episode ended, the anchor announced he was moving to the top patron’s house to work. The timeline matches up.

3L: As someone who ships the anchor and the top patron, I went back to watch that episode. Mr. Ji and the top patron’s voice and manner of speaking are exactly the same. It’s just that no one ever considered the possibility before.

4L: So, Mr. Ji went on the show just to bring the anchor home? And then he quietly retreated after succeeding?

5L: Also, does that mean Mr. Ji and Yu Xin have been living together all along? He cooks for him every day? Help, I’m about to faint! (pinches philtrum)

6L: So both the anchor and the top patron are *this*! good! looking! I was worried the top patron might be some unattractive older guy, but now I’m completely reassured.

7L: In all my years of shipping, I’ve never seen such absolutely stellar follow-up service… I have no regrets!

The mask falling off was, of course, no accident. The production team immediately launched an internal investigation and quickly identified the culprit—the staff member who had inspected Yu Xin’s crown before he went onstage. A large transfer into his bank account was all the proof needed.

The production team promptly issued a statement, firing the individual and banning them for life. For violating his contract, the staff member also had to pay a hefty penalty.

As for who was behind the scenes, directing the staff member to tamper with the mask, the production team had yet to uncover their identity.

But there was no need to investigate—Yu Xin knew exactly who it was.

Who else could it be but Yu Ning?

He never expected the other party to strike from this angle. The move was more clumsy than damaging, and it backfired spectacularly. Now, no one even cared whether Yu Ning’s restaurant was opening or not.

The production team, of course, felt immensely guilty toward Yu Xin. Too ashamed to face him directly, they approached him after the show ended and offered compensation. They proposed collaborating with Flying Fish Platform to create a series of exclusive exposure opportunities for Yu Xin, aiming to elevate his career to new heights.

Financial compensation was also part of the deal—a substantial sum was transferred to Yu Xin’s account.

Yu Xin was now sitting on a fortune.

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Author's note: Mending the heavens in progress...